Blogging when you don't have much to say

52 replies
I have a wide range of interests. The problem is, with each one, I can't really imagine myself blogging about it long term. Either I don't know that much about the topic and I'm not particularly keen on learning a great deal more about it (in other words I like to keep it as a casual interest), or, if I do know quite a bit about the topic, I'm just not interested in writing about it.

For example, I'm a musician. I play guitar. I've been working on a short ebook about a particular aspect of guitar playing (fretboard familiarization using greek modes, for anyone who knows what I mean). Writing the book isn't a problem, the problem is that I seriously can't be bothered to blog endlessly about that aspect of guitar playing (never mind the fact that before long I would have covered everything in the book), or even about guitar playing in general.

The thing is, sometimes a person can be quite interested in something, or even very interested, but their outlet for their interest doesn't include writing. I mean, I can enjoy playing guitar, but seriously I can't be bothered to write about it long term. The only reason I'm interested in writing a book at all is because I think I've come up with quite a nifty system, which I do enjoy defining, clarifying, etc. But apart from that, the only thing I like doing is playing, not writing.

The great irony is that I do love writing, and I'm quite good at it. I'm actually very keen on finding a good reason to write. But there's a mismatch between my love of writing and my distaste for writing fluff and repeating myself, which is what I'd end up doing if I started a blog based on my product (that's if I finish it). I'm also not keen on having to rehash other people's articles just to have something to write. I just don't want to force myself to write. I don't want it to be a constant struggle.

I do realise that if I'm going to create an information product (ie a book about guitar fretboard familiarization), I'm going to need a blog, so that I have a reason to keep adding to it, so that I have a marketing tool.

But as I say my interest is limited to doing it, not writing endlessly about it. I wouldn't mind maybe writing about 3 or 4 articles, and then leaving it at that, but I know that's not the way to do it. I'm stuck.

Basically I've racked my brains and out of all the things that I'm interested in, not one of them is something that I feel enthusiastic in blogging about long term. I'm more interested in creating info products (including the writing aspect of that). But also, I do want to write in a blog. At first I hated the idea of marketing, but now that I get it, I'm ok with it, and I definitely do feel that a good blog to accompany my products would be the way to go.

Another issue is that I don't feel that I could create multiple information products about any of the topics that I'm interested in. For example, with the guitar book, I think I might be able to come up with maybe 2 or 3 more short books about other aspects of guitar playing, but after that, that would be it. Same goes for my other interests. Basically I have an eclectic mix of interests, and my enthusiasm and passion is spread over all of them, rather than being concentrated intensely on any one of them. The exception is guitar playing, but when it comes to writing about it, I only have so much that I'm able to and willing to write.

This is something that I've looked into but out of all the business / entrepreneur / blogging blogs that I've seen, none of them seems to really address this in a helpful way. All I see is the same generic advice.

What should I do?
#blogging
  • Profile picture of the author Mark Tandan
    My sense from what you've said is that you're thinking way too long term. Before you've even written 1 post you've essentially decided you don't plan on sticking with the writing.

    If, as you say, you really do enjoy writing, start simple. Start a journal. Forget about blogging, for now. Just write what you want, a little each day, about whatever you found interesting that day. Not a lot. Baby steps.

    In a month or so go back through that journal. You'll have little blog posts about a wide range of topics. Dial in on one or 2 of them, and then re-focus your journal on just those 2 interests for the next month. Same as above - don't force it, just a little each day.

    You might find that if you've been enjoying the writing and not forcing it, you'll be able to keep at it. And that's what bloggers do.
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Originally Posted by Mark Tandan View Post

      My sense from what you've said is that you're thinking way too long term. Before you've even written 1 post you've essentially decided you don't plan on sticking with the writing.

      If, as you say, you really do enjoy writing, start simple. Start a journal. Forget about blogging, for now. Just write what you want, a little each day, about whatever you found interesting that day. Not a lot. Baby steps.

      In a month or so go back through that journal. You'll have little blog posts about a wide range of topics. Dial in on one or 2 of them, and then re-focus your journal on just those 2 interests for the next month. Same as above - don't force it, just a little each day.

      You might find that if you've been enjoying the writing and not forcing it, you'll be able to keep at it. And that's what bloggers do.
      It's not that I don't plan on sticking to writing. On the contrary, I'd like writing to a part of what I do. I mean, even in the creation of info products, that often involves writing and that's ok. The problem is that no matter which way I look at it, I can't picture myself enjoying writing blog post after blog post for months and possibly years, and forcing it, just to market some products. It would drive me crazy.

      Writing a journal of things that interest me, or things that pop into my head every day, I can't. I just can't do it. It's not my style. And I really don't think I need to do it in order to figure out what interest me. I already know the kinds of things that I'm interested in, or know a little bit about. I don't think I need to go through that process.

      I bet if anyone was to go through say 100 non fiction books, a significant percentage of those books would contain a substantial amount of fluff. Not that there's anything wrong with a bit of fluff (no pun intended), it certainly is necessary, but basically a blog is an endlessly ongoing book, which means that after a while you've pretty much said all there is to say, and then you're just repeating and rephrasing what you've already said and I don't think I could stand that. When I write, I like to keep it low fat (low fluff, maximum value), and blogs are basically just chit chat. I can't do it that way. I'm really trying hard to find a way to think of blogging as something that I can enjoy, but if it's going to be too fluffy I don't think I could. Surely there's got to be some alternative.

      What about having a blog, writing a limited number of (very useful) articles, and then leaving it at that?
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      • Profile picture of the author mpollak450
        Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post


        What about having a blog, writing a limited number of (very useful) articles, and then leaving it at that?
        If its something you actually work in then topics won't really be an issue. If you have any sort of feedback you'll be able to write on questions people have or how that industry is changing. All kinds of things will change as you go. If you really are that concerned about it now, it seems that you will get what you focus on and eventually exactly what you don't want will happen.
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  • Profile picture of the author silvial
    I understand exactly what you are saying as you have described your situation so clearly.

    Maybe you would be better off offering your services as a product creator and having a blog about that. It is a real need and an ongoing need. There would be lots of interest in how to create products, how to market, where to market, which programs to use. I'm sure a brainstorm on this topic would bring up tons of ideas. There would be the opportunity to create your own e book or better still 'course' for sale on your blog.

    As for your guitar e book maybe just make a small blog. Just add to it every now and then by reviewing guitar related products, make a video. Not all of the posts would have to be about guitars - You could keep it in the music line and write about concerts you have been to. Check out other guitar blogs and see what ideas they have.

    Otherwise you could offer your book for sale elsewhere. Would it go on Kindle? Then you could forget about the guitar blog which you may lose interest in anyway.
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    • Profile picture of the author igorGriffiths
      Why make a blog, sounds like your idea would be better presented via video

      Create video highlighting the issue and your solution then link to the page where you are offering your book.

      You could then either blog about people's issues with your idea, from the feedback you get or from the struggles you had perfecting this idea.
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      • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
        Originally Posted by igorGriffiths View Post

        Why make a blog, sounds like your idea would be better presented via video

        Create video highlighting the issue and your solution then link to the page where you are offering your book.

        You could then either blog about people's issues with your idea, from the feedback you get or from the struggles you had perfecting this idea.
        So if I was to create a few videos of me doing the exercises that I outline in the book, and putting that on youtube, and then link to my website that would then promote the book, would that really work? I'm not sure if I want to be seen on youtube. Also I don't feel very enthusiastic about communicating back and forth with people about my system. I'm not much of a people person when it comes to justifying myself. I hate it. I'd rather just be the guy that creates it, does a bit of marketing, and then fingers crossed.
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        • Profile picture of the author William Martin
          There does not seem to be much point in creating a blog if you do not have the drive to maintain it.

          Anyway, a blog is only 'useful' if you can get traffic to it that will then buy your wares.

          It seems to me you would be much better off...

          (a) Guest posting on other people's blogs
          (b) Commenting on relevant forums
          (c) Creating a Facebook fan page where you don't have to produce a lot of content (your fans do most of that)
          (d) Running Facebook ads to promote either your Facebook page or your ebooks (these should be relatively cheap because this is not a hugely competitive topic)
          (e) Creating videos and cross-linking them with your fan page

          I hope that helps!
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          • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
            Originally Posted by William Martin View Post

            There does not seem to be much point in creating a blog if you do not have the drive to maintain it.

            Anyway, a blog is only 'useful' if you can get traffic to it that will then buy your wares.

            It seems to me you would be much better off...

            (a) Guest posting on other people's blogs
            (b) Commenting on relevant forums
            (c) Creating a Facebook fan page where you don't have to produce a lot of content (your fans do most of that)
            (d) Running Facebook ads to promote either your Facebook page or your ebooks (these should be relatively cheap because this is not a hugely competitive topic)
            (e) Creating videos and cross-linking them with your fan page

            I hope that helps!

            Thanks.

            Guest posting - how often roughly would I need to do that? Could I just pick 3 or 4 things out of the book, and then create a post about each, submit those posts to various blogs and that's it (just the same posts in various places), or would I have to keep writing new stuff?

            Commenting on forums - Oh dear, I tried that. I tried it 4 years ago, and out of the 16 people that responded, only 1 of them even knew what I was on about. The reaction of the other 15 ranged from completely missing the point no matter how many times I explained it in many different ways, to looking down their nose at me and lecturing me on music theory as if I knew nothing. I tried it again recently and it was pretty much the same. Never, ever, ever, ever, ever again. Never. If people want to open their minds about a different way of looking at something, they can come to me, but I'm not going to waste so much energy and demoralise myself like that again. Never.

            Facebook - Although I detest facebook, and although for a long time I didn't understand how it could be used for marketing, I get it now. But could I really get away with posting a tiny handful of posts and still have people coming to my site? The whole idea is to create updates, but I have no updates. It's just a book that makes about 4 points about playing the guitar. I really believe in my book (although it's unfinished) but it's hardly an encyclopaedia.

            Facebook ads - I would look into that eventually.

            Creating videos - Yes, I could do that. But how much traffic could I generate by posting a few videos on youtube? Is it realistic to expect it to generate ongoing traffic with a youtube channel that doesn't get updated?
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Originally Posted by silvial View Post

      I understand exactly what you are saying as you have described your situation so clearly.

      Maybe you would be better off offering your services as a product creator and having a blog about that. It is a real need and an ongoing need. There would be lots of interest in how to create products, how to market, where to market, which programs to use. I'm sure a brainstorm on this topic would bring up tons of ideas. There would be the opportunity to create your own e book or better still 'course' for sale on your blog.

      As for your guitar e book maybe just make a small blog. Just add to it every now and then by reviewing guitar related products, make a video. Not all of the posts would have to be about guitars - You could keep it in the music line and write about concerts you have been to. Check out other guitar blogs and see what ideas they have.

      Otherwise you could offer your book for sale elsewhere. Would it go on Kindle? Then you could forget about the guitar blog which you may lose interest in anyway.
      Having a blog would be good as a marketing tool for products, but obviously I have the issue about writing fluff long term. I would be happy to have a small blog and not update it very often, but surely it would be useless as a marketing tool. Or would it? Does that actually work for anyone?
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      • Profile picture of the author silvial
        I was thinking more along the lines of you creating a blog that is all about creating info products like your guitar book. Teach people how to create products. You would never run out of ideas.

        As well as writing the blog you could also write an e book or write an actual course where you have lessons showing how to create products.

        It sounds as though you are more interested in product creation so this could be something to pursue.
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        • Profile picture of the author silvial
          Our messages must have crossed. When you make a video you don't always see the person speaking. Often instructional type videos show a PowerPoint where the educator is talking and may cross to live websites. it is the slide and website that you see not the presenter.
          One thing though, a fingers crossed approach won't work.
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          • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
            Originally Posted by silvial View Post

            Our messages must have crossed. When you make a video you don't always see the person speaking. Often instructional type videos show a PowerPoint where the educator is talking and may cross to live websites. it is the slide and website that you see not the presenter.
            One thing though, a fingers crossed approach won't work.
            Yes you're quite right. It could just be a video of the neck of the guitar with me speaking and playing (without crossing fingers, pun intended).
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        • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
          Originally Posted by silvial View Post

          I was thinking more along the lines of you creating a blog that is all about creating info products like your guitar book. Teach people how to create products. You would never run out of ideas.

          As well as writing the blog you could also write an e book or write an actual course where you have lessons showing how to create products.

          It sounds as though you are more interested in product creation so this could be something to pursue.
          Thanks I really do appreciate the suggestion but my instinct is that it's not for me. It would be kind of like creating a blog to market a product that teaches people how to create a blog. Or teaching people how to teach. For me, what is exciting is the idea of imparting my knowledge. But my knowledge is limited, and blogging, although it involves writing, is like a bottomless pit that goes on forever. Even if I were to learn more, I'd still have to write endlessly.

          It's tough enough finding something to create products for, and so the prospect of having to then also blog forever about it is really unappealing.
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  • Profile picture of the author RevenueGal
    Blogging does require some commitment and so you're wise to consider all that's involved before taking that leap.

    I think for one, you're overwhelmed with everything... you see the BIG picture upfront of all that's involved, which is good...the bad part is that it will keep you from taking any action at all to get started.

    A blog doesn't have to tie you down. It can be used as a lead generation for an info product or services you want to sell. And it does help you establish yourself as an expert in your niche. I look at some of the top internet marketers out there, and very few spend their time tied down to a blog.

    Since you do love writing, the best thing to do is start with your topic idea and launch your blog. You don't have to post 3-5 times a week like many bloggers do. Once or twice can be sufficient.

    There's no need to create "fluff". Others here have already suggested great ideas for blog posts. For times when you're not ready to create new content yourself, you can curate content...in other words, share what other bloggers in your niche have posted (including great videos you've enjoyed watching.)

    Some people find blog partners to share a blog. So if you have others who are interested in blogging, you can share the posting duties...this way it's not all on your shoulders alone.

    I'd be interested in hearing your updates on what you conquer in this coming year. Blogging isn't for everyone, but people often look at blogs as some huge commitment to write everyday about the same exact topic. For one, you want to choose a topic that's general enough to cover several "subtopic" ideas...so you have plenty of topic choices to cover. Secondly, you don't have to make it a lifetime commitment...often bloggers discover their passion as they journey through the process of blogging...and it may open doors to other opportunities.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steve B
      Johnny,

      You're new here and it's obvious that you are an intelligent person. But because of your newness, you haven't yet opened your mind yet to all the various possibilities for making money online. Blogging is just one tiny option that some have chosen as a way to nurture their audience and grow their list of prospects. There are lots and lots of way to make money online and you would do well to begin to think outside the box and observe what others are doing.

      Others can write for you, their is niche content that can be syndicated, there is public domain content, plr content, and a host of other choices. Your product is in just one niche - many folks here add one niche product after another and are constantly expanding their business empire.

      You have said little about niche and market research. That topic, in my opinion, should be your starting point. Many successful people have begun their online career gravitating toward things that they enjoy, things that they are good at, have experience or training with, or things that interest them.

      Often, great online business people also are inquiring minds. They are willing students of topics that they have no authority in but they jump into the niche and learn as they go.

      I hope you are successful and I think you can be . . . but you need to develop your focus and you need to explore your willingness to pick a topic and commit to it. If nothing appeals to you and you can't get excited about anything in particular, Internet business may not be right for you.

      I'm not saying you have to just pick one thing and that's your career for the rest of your life. But you need to focus on one thing long enough to understand the market, develop your product, create your web site and sales funnel, grow a list, and get sales coming in consistently. Then you can think about starting your next project and it could be in a totally different niche.

      I hope you have lots of success!

      Steve
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      • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
        I appreciate the feedback and I'm reading all the responses.

        I just had a thought. What if I just said **** it? I mean, my topic doesn't lend itself to endless writing, or at least I'm not willing to keep repeating myself and reframing everything again and again just to be able to say that I'm updating my blog.

        After all, surely a narrow niche doesn't have that much to write about, so why struggle?

        So why don't I just finish my short book, start a blog, and try to squeeze out as many articles as I'm willing to write, without giving away everything in the book, and maybe do a few (properly done, without plagiarising, and with my own spin) rehashes of other people's articles elsewhere, and then just leverage everything to the max, on forums, facebook or wherever. And then rinse and repeat, with the same articles (unless I occasionally manage to find something to write about).

        Would that work? Obviously I wouldn't have the advantage of being a blog that is regularly updated, and I realise that if someone visits and isn't quite convinced to buy the book they might not return because there's no new material to remind them to come back, and certainly no mailing list (what would be the point? I wouldn't have anything new to add) to keep them interested and engaged. But on the other hand, I would remain totally focussed on the niche of fretboard familiarization, as opposed to any other aspect of guitar playing. Anyone who searched for what I do would surely find me (if I make sure I use good keywords and phrases in everything I write).

        Instead of being the pied piper with his gang of followers who might buy his product, I could be the guy in the dark alley who says "Pssst...check this out".

        Are there any successful blogs that do this? It would be a shame to not be able to make some money from a book which I think is very useful. I don't expect riches, but it would be nice to have a little source of ongoing income, one that I could give a kick up the ass from time to time with some focussed marketing. And who knows, if it goes well, I might just add another book or two if I think I have it in me, and take it from there.
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        • Profile picture of the author Sid Hale
          Johnny, Johnny, Johnny...

          You have a product. To sell it, begin thinking like a merchant.

          You're thinking like an affiliate.

          Get your sales machine set up, and quit worrying about a blog. Concentrate on a good sales page, and setting up your payment processor. Set up an affiliate program.

          Worry about how to recruit good affiliates.
          Worry about how to collect buyers' email addresses from the customers the affiliates will bring you.

          Let them spread the word about your product, create links to your sales page, etc. It's what they get paid to do, and they will gladly blog about your product and supply backlinks to your page (with their affiliate ID).
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          • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
            Originally Posted by Sid Hale View Post

            Johnny, Johnny, Johnny...

            You have a product. To sell it, begin thinking like a merchant.

            You're thinking like an affiliate.

            Get your sales machine set up, and quit worrying about a blog. Concentrate on a good sales page, and setting up your payment processor. Set up an affiliate program.

            Worry about how to recruit good affiliates.
            Worry about how to collect buyers' email addresses from the customers the affiliates will bring you.

            Let them spread the word about your product, create links to your sales page, etc. It's what they get paid to do, and they will gladly blog about your product and supply backlinks to your page (with their affiliate ID).
            Thanks.

            I don't know much about that sort of thing. Some questions :


            * What percentage do affiliates usually ask for?

            * Creating a sales page, how is that done? Can I just create a blog and use that as a sales page (without blogging), or is there a specific way to do it?

            * You mention having a payment processor. Can I not just sell it on Amazon?

            * How do I set up an affiliate program?

            * Is a short book enough of an interesting proposition for an affiliate?

            * What if no one wants to promote something that is in such a small niche?

            * On an unrelated note, how do I go about doing the copyright notes and all the small print that appears at the start of a book?
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            • Profile picture of the author Sid Hale
              Johnny,

              Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post

              Some questions :

              * What percentage do affiliates usually ask for?

              * Creating a sales page, how is that done? Can I just create a blog and use that as a sales page (without blogging), or is there a specific way to do it?

              * You mention having a payment processor. Can I not just sell it on Amazon?

              * How do I set up an affiliate program?

              * Is a short book enough of an interesting proposition for an affiliate?

              * What if no one wants to promote something that is in such a small niche?

              * On an unrelated note, how do I go about doing the copyright notes and all the small print that appears at the start of a book?
              Way too many (and too varied) questions to be answered in a single post. For instance, you asked "Can I not just sell it on Amazon?"

              Sure - but there are long threads here and numerous ebooks written about just how to do that one thing.

              In the meantime, I've PM'ed you a download link for a complimentary copy of my Advanced Marketing Strategies ebook.

              Hope that helps in some little way.
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          • Profile picture of the author jgant
            Originally Posted by Sid Hale View Post

            Johnny, Johnny, Johnny...

            You have a product. To sell it, begin thinking like a merchant.

            You're thinking like an affiliate.

            Get your sales machine set up, and quit worrying about a blog. Concentrate on a good sales page, and setting up your payment processor. Set up an affiliate program.

            Worry about how to recruit good affiliates.
            Worry about how to collect buyers' email addresses from the customers the affiliates will bring you.

            Let them spread the word about your product, create links to your sales page, etc. It's what they get paid to do, and they will gladly blog about your product and supply backlinks to your page (with their affiliate ID).
            This plus buy traffic. Facebook ads is a good place to start.

            Also, if you have 15 more good articles in you, save them for your email newsletter sequence that's sent to buyers. Either create more products or find products to promote as an affiliate (there are tons of guitar stuff to promote).

            That's all you have to do. Assuming your front-end product converts, you're in business.
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            • Profile picture of the author Jill Carpenter
              Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post

              I appreciate the feedback and I'm reading all the responses.

              I just had a thought. What if I just said **** it? I mean, my topic doesn't lend itself to endless writing, or at least I'm not willing to keep repeating myself and reframing everything again and again just to be able to say that I'm updating my blog.

              After all, surely a narrow niche doesn't have that much to write about, so why struggle?
              Here is a link to a site which gives you 5 blogs you can stalk. Looks like these guys are finding all kinds of things guitar related to talk about. One on one of the blogs even mentions he's now getting into pod casting.
              Code:
              http://www.riffstation.com/blog/5-guitar-blogs-worth-watching-in-2013/
              Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post


              But could I really make a reasonable income from 1 book? I know it sounds juvenile and naive to ask, but how much of an income can I realistically expect from a 7,000 or so word book (with diagrams, and who knows, maybe I could include videos in it in future) about one particular aspect of guitar playing? Assuming that it is marketed and promoted as well as it can be.
              Go back and check out those 5 sites. Look at how each is monetizing the blogs. They are not just selling one book. They are selling ad space on the sites. They are selling other peoples books. They are selling music related apps. They are selling all kinds of things and they are able to find a bit of new content on a consistent basis or some new thing going on.

              I'm not saying don't do the book. The book is your product. Doing the book will also help you find a list of confirmed buyers. You don't just sell your buyers one book. You offer them other things too.

              If I go shopping in the store for a new outfit and someone comes to me and tells me they have some really nice jewelry to go with that outfit, or some shoes that would look great with that outfit, I'm going to be interested if I've already taken a great liking to the suit I'm buying.

              People are willing to spend more money with people they trust.

              People trust people who give them great quality in an initially purchased product.

              I think part of the issue is commitment. If you want an authority site of some kind there is definitely some commitment and obsession required with the niche. But in honesty that obsession is only a piece of what will be going on in your head. The whole "running the business" part has nothing to do with guitars what so ever but is the other half of what will need to go on - so you may not get as bored with the new marriage of the two as soon as you think you would.

              And what happens if you put in 5 years and you are bored to tears? You sell the site. A site you've built that is making some money. It will sell if it can be proven that there is a regular income on the site.

              Then you go and find something new to get just enough obsessed about to make a nice little business out of it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Geri Richmond
    Hi,
    Do some research, first. Don't worry about coming up with enough material for your niche. There are a lot of good PLR stores on the Internet and there is Elance, Odesk, Fiverr, Fourerr etc. You can find people to write for you.
    Whatever you do, LOVE it and have a PASSION for it because you will be writing about it a lot.
    Good luck with your decision.
    Geri Richmond
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  • Profile picture of the author clever7
    Why should you create a blog about something?

    Write books for Kindle. Blogging is not for everyone.

    You will make more money writing Kindle books, and you won't have to update your blog all the time. If you are a good writer and you will write many books, you will have a passive income.

    You can also create Squidoo lenses, Hub pages, and Zujava leafs to promote your books, and get paid for creating these pages.







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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Originally Posted by clever7 View Post

      Why should you create a blog about something?

      Write books for Kindle. Blogging is not for everyone.

      You will make more money writing Kindle books, and you won't have to update your blog all the time. If you are a good writer and you will write many books, you will have a passive income.

      You can also create Squidoo lenses, Hub pages, and Zujava leafs to promote your books, and get paid for creating these pages.






      I certainly don't want the pressure of having to keep writing about such a limited topic, and to be honest, my interest in it is limited to writing the book. Having said that, I'm happy to take excepts and water them down a bit and come up maybe 10 short articles, and then leave it at that.

      But could I really make a reasonable income from 1 book? I know it sounds juvenile and naive to ask, but how much of an income can I realistically expect from a 7,000 or so word book (with diagrams, and who knows, maybe I could include videos in it in future) about one particular aspect of guitar playing? Assuming that it is marketed and promoted as well as it can be.
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      • Profile picture of the author mrjasonser
        Johnny,
        I really understand what you are saying here, I had the same dilemma just like you. How I overcome it, I went ahead and get started anyway, I failed then I restart again, and failed again then restart...and before I knew it, my knowledge increased, skills sharpened and developed something that I finally can make money.

        I am not suggesting you to fail as many times as me, what I do know that it's you can just start it off to find other means from the actual experience in "DOING".

        My suggestion is maybe you can think not only in terms of writing your own blog post but also on a wider marketing perspective of what your can do. I did a mini brainstormed and come out with a few random ideas as follows...

        On Content Creation:


        Showcase your talent
        If you are really good and like playing guitar as you said, then don't hide behind and showcase your talent in videos. It's not about promoting yourself, but also a chance to find and connect with like minded people and land on other deals.

        You can create videos with you playing different covers of songs you love. A video post a week is 52 videos in a year, but maybe you can just create 10 video post to add to "the articles you wrote. that show case your talents,

        Expanding your content ideas

        You can also create videos and articles on other general tips on whatever you know about guitars or even music in general..( eg. How to choose the best guitars? Other guitarist you admired? New music albums you recommend with a particular guitar performance that you feel is good to know....etc.)



        Other people content, Coop or Guest Posting and PRs:
        -Once you have your site more or less established, perhaps you can partner with another ( if not a few) other guitar and music enthusiastic to be featured or even guest post on your blog.

        -How about Press Release service on your blog? Throw out a few discount deal for your PR service for testimonials. You can control how may PRS you want within a month.

        I wish I have a passion like yours, cause there are so many fun and creative ways to explore here. I mean , after all, if you can have fun and make money doing it, you won't have problems to do it again and again for a longer time.


        I hope my suggestions helps but you can always PM me if you have more questions.

        Cheers
        Jason S
        Signature
        I Don't Speak The Queen's English, But I Say What I Mean and Mean What I Say.

        Here is where I work now: www.LohasDigital.com

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        • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
          I understand. Thanks.

          I read somewhere that it's a good idea to put an ebook on Amazon for free to begin with, and then if people download it, then sell it for a small price, and then gradually increase it. I'm thinking this might be the way to go, and then, if I at some point add some videos to it to illustrate the exercises in the book, I could increase the price even more, on the basis that videos, for whatever reason, give the impression of higher value than just text.

          Should I do that?
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          • Profile picture of the author mrjasonser
            Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post

            I understand. Thanks.

            I read somewhere that it's a good idea to put an ebook on Amazon for free to begin with, and then if people download it, then sell it for a small price, and then gradually increase it. I'm thinking this might be the way to go, and then, if I at some point add some videos to it to illustrate the exercises in the book, I could increase the price even more, on the basis that videos, for whatever reason, give the impression of higher value than just text.

            Should I do that?
            What's the harm of doing that as long as it did not cost your arms of legs? There is only one way to find our really...do it. And document your process down to learn from it. Then adapt , improvise and overcome as the time goes.

            Cheers
            Jason S
            IMBlackBox.com
            Signature
            I Don't Speak The Queen's English, But I Say What I Mean and Mean What I Say.

            Here is where I work now: www.LohasDigital.com

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      • Profile picture of the author clever7
        Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post

        I certainly don't want the pressure of having to keep writing about such a limited topic, and to be honest, my interest in it is limited to writing the book. Having said that, I'm happy to take excepts and water them down a bit and come up maybe 10 short articles, and then leave it at that.

        But could I really make a reasonable income from 1 book? I know it sounds juvenile and naive to ask, but how much of an income can I realistically expect from a 7,000 or so word book (with diagrams, and who knows, maybe I could include videos in it in future) about one particular aspect of guitar playing? Assuming that it is marketed and promoted as well as it can be.
        You can make a few dollars per month with one book. But since you have many different interests, you can write many different nonfiction books about all the topics you know. You can also complete your knowledge with research.

        One book won't help you. You must have a few Kindle books for sale to really make money.

        There are many ways to promote your books thanks to Amazon's programs. You have to learn everything.

        If you are a good writer, this is a better way to have an income instead of depending on your blog. Amazon gets a lot of traffic because it already has a fan base. You don't depend on Google.





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  • Profile picture of the author Moneymaker2012
    If you don't want to write then make a video on any basic tips about playing guitar and then post your link in the description and in the end of the video say "if want to learn more about guitar then click the link below".Hope this helps
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Tyler
    Speaking from personal experience, the more you blog about something the more you will have to say
    Signature

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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Thanks Sid (I downloaded it), and thanks Mike, although I don't know if writing extensively will make me have more to say. Then again I base that assumption on the fact that I don't like extended meaningless smalltalk, which is how I think of it. Who knows, maybe you're right.

      By the way I have a pdf of the latest version of my book. It's very incomplete, the diagrams are unfinished, and it's not the finished product by a long way, although I'm getting there.

      Is there any way to show it here, to get some feedback?
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  • Profile picture of the author TheMaleRN
    The key is to never stop. I agree with mrjasonser, you fail, and then jump back up several times and the next thing you know you have a boatload of experiences to share.
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Originally Posted by TheMaleRN View Post

      The key is to never stop. I agree with mrjasonser, you fail, and then jump back up several times and the next thing you know you have a boatload of experiences to share.
      I'm one of those people who gets very enthusiastic about something, but if I feel that it's all getting too much, I tend to gradually give up. Sometimes I go back to it, sometimes I don't. I'm a big fan of the word "leverage", which I keep coming across, so whatever I learn, I can leverage it / use it where it matters, even if I don't use it immediately. I'm thinking of this as a course, a learning process. Whatever I learn will surely come in handy at some point, so the more the merrier.

      It's daunting, this whole internet business thing. But I get the feeling that there's a little code to crack, and once it's cracked things get easier. I also get the feeling that many people get it wrong, or don't do it quite as well as they can. And I get thrown by terminology, I think sometimes terminology gets in the way of understanding things that are probably quite simple.
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  • Profile picture of the author Will Edwards
    To stay with your guitar example, find some aspect of guitar playing that you are interested in and that you could write about endlessly. If you put your mind to it, the answer will come to you.

    But - for example - you could write about great guitar players, people who you like and admire. You could discuss their playing styles and other aspects of what makes/make them great. That would be a limitless pot of ideas for you right there.

    People would find your site because they are interested in the people you are writing about and then you could capture names/emails for people interested in a basic tips course. You provide the course via email and you pitch your book and related products you have tried and found to be helpful.

    As those meerkats say, 'simples!'

    Will
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  • Profile picture of the author Jtraits
    i tend to agree with the person that wrote above "start with baby steps" . you say that you like writing but because you are thinking long-term, it lets you down. start with something small, something small each day... and you continue from there. time flies by so fast
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  • Profile picture of the author JRJWrites
    First off, you don't like blogging, you can always hire someone to do that for you (shameless pitch).

    Apart from that, the main thing is perseverance. We've all been there when we simply canNOT write another blog post.

    False.

    Just open the WP editor, and start typing. Sooner or later, the thoughts will flow again.

    If you can't blog at least 50 times about it...then why blog? Why not just have a "website" without a blog?

    Food for thought.
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  • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
    Thanks for the advice everyone. It will all sink in gradually, I'm sure.

    Who wants to see my book as it is currently? It's far from done, but maybe I can get some feedback. I have a pdf of it but I have no idea how I would show it to anyone.
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    • Profile picture of the author mrjasonser
      Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post

      ...It's daunting, this whole internet business thing. But I get the feeling that there's a little code to crack, and once it's cracked things get easier....
      You are right! You get to crack the code from your experience in doing. Will's method and suggestions is the most sound of all. You can start doing that, and add "leverage" like what you said, by adding a twist or 2 to your marketing and outsourcing certain task.

      Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post

      Thanks for the advice everyone. It will all sink in gradually, I'm sure.

      Who wants to see my book as it is currently? It's far from done, but maybe I can get some feedback. I have a pdf of it but I have no idea how I would show it to anyone.
      Simply upload it on dropbox and PM the link to anyone you feel comfortable with.
      Signature
      I Don't Speak The Queen's English, But I Say What I Mean and Mean What I Say.

      Here is where I work now: www.LohasDigital.com

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  • Profile picture of the author vedremo
    Banned
    The secret to one's success is doing the thing that you're passionate about. You just can't fake something. If blogging isn't one of your true passions then might as well not pursue it.

    There are many individuals like you who have many interests but don't have a particular focus of interest or hobby. I agree that if you can't commit to writing blog posts then might as well outsource it. Since you value unique contents, you can always come up with itemized information of the things you want to be written. You can always inject the things you want and let the outsourced writer do his or her thing.

    You don't have to blog but you can just write an ebook. In this way, all your ideas are compiled in one book. You don't have to update the contents every week. Again, you can just organize your thoughts and outsource the writing if it's becoming a tedious process.

    Assessing what you've posted, it seems that you need to honestly assess what you want done and accomplished. You need to be true to what you want to do with your time. Time management is something that will help you on a long-term basis.

    I believe that eclectic people are scatterbrained ones. But they can be tamed and once tamed, they can be very fierce in anything that they focus their attention to. Individuals like you can be a source of unique and inspiring ideas. Focus - this is just what you need right now.
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Ok I've uploaded it onto Dropbox, for anyone who would like to see it, and maybe give me some feedback. I've made some changes so the version here isn't the very latest. The whole thing is incomplete anyway, but it's a rough idea.

      Let me know and I'll send the link.
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Originally Posted by vedremo View Post

      The secret to one's success is doing the thing that you're passionate about. You just can't fake something. If blogging isn't one of your true passions then might as well not pursue it.

      There are many individuals like you who have many interests but don't have a particular focus of interest or hobby. I agree that if you can't commit to writing blog posts then might as well outsource it. Since you value unique contents, you can always come up with itemized information of the things you want to be written. You can always inject the things you want and let the outsourced writer do his or her thing.

      You don't have to blog but you can just write an ebook. In this way, all your ideas are compiled in one book. You don't have to update the contents every week. Again, you can just organize your thoughts and outsource the writing if it's becoming a tedious process.

      Assessing what you've posted, it seems that you need to honestly assess what you want done and accomplished. You need to be true to what you want to do with your time. Time management is something that will help you on a long-term basis.

      I believe that eclectic people are scatterbrained ones. But they can be tamed and once tamed, they can be very fierce in anything that they focus their attention to. Individuals like you can be a source of unique and inspiring ideas. Focus - this is just what you need right now.
      It's true. I'm not super passionate about anything in particular, at least long term (except making music, and even then it has to be on my terms), but I do have a lot of interests and things that i might like to read about or watch a video about from time to time. I like learning, but I don't feel the need to structure it. I think it's a very rare person who is so obsessed with something that they could just write about it forever. You're right, I should outsource the things that I don't like doing or I'm not good at, and stick to what I do best. I love the idea of being able to create whatever I feel like creating, without having to worry about what came before. I like the idea of making lots of passive-ish income streams from my interests.

      A few years ago I spent months trying to figure out what my values are in life. My top 5 list was :

      Freedom
      Creativity
      Happiness / fulfilment
      Positivity
      Excellence

      I do need to have the freedom to do things on my terms and in my own time. I don't make making sacrifices and compromises, as long as it's not too much.
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  • In my experience, blogging of any kind requires research. Even if you're very familiar with the subject, you'll want to do some research to reference other sources and add value to the post. My advice would be to carry around a small notepad or use a note app to jot down ideas when they come to mind. Once you have ideas, come up with an outline for the post. This will include the main ideas/sections of the post, followed by sub-sections. If you can create a solid outline, filling in the content should be easy with the right research. The idea of writing a lot for a blog can be daunting and cause writers block before you even begin but it doesn't have to be.

    Idea --> Outline --> Research --> Post
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  • Profile picture of the author Benjamin Ehinger
    Let's start with dumping the over thinking and excuses and just get post #1 done. You may surprise yourself.

    I am a writer and I used to think there was no way I could write thousands of posts about one subject. I have written nearly 5,000 posts in the hosting industry for clients over the past four years and I can still find new information, a new spin on things and provide quality posts.

    Guitars isn't exactly a small niche and there's a ton of things you could write about. Instead of keeping your blog so tight to the subject of your eBook, why not write about the history, profile famous guitarist, bands, etc. There are a ton of things you could write about and put your own twist on pretty easily.

    My advice, stop thinking about it and stat writing! The first post is the hardest, I promise!

    Benjamin Ehinger
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  • Profile picture of the author Sean DeSilva
    I think it would benefit you greatly to listen to radio hosts. They manage to have a topic to talk about every single day, and it never sounds boring to their audience.

    In order to do that you have to deeply know which your audience wants to hear, and be able to tap into that regularly using time relevance, personality, conflict and controversy.
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  • Profile picture of the author Stuart Walker
    You could create products and just work on getting other people to sell your product so you don't have to run a blog.

    Many of the big vendors here on WF for example don't have their own blogs but just knock out product after product and work on getting affiliates on board to promote.
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny1975
      Originally Posted by Stuart Walker View Post

      You could create products and just work on getting other people to sell your product so you don't have to run a blog.

      Many of the big vendors here on WF for example don't have their own blogs but just knock out product after product and work on getting affiliates on board to promote.
      I think that's the way I should go. I want the freedom to create a product about whatever interests me at the time, and then get as many affiliates as I can to promote it. But I don't like the idea of having to keep churning out products about the same thing.

      I've been reading about this, and it seems that the thing to do is to create a product, give affiliates 100% commission, and then sell something else related to that original product, to those who are become my customers. But I can't do that. I mean I'm not prepared to do that. I only have 1 book, or rather I will have once it's finished, and I don't feel like writing another one about the same topic or even a related topic.

      By the way my income aspirations are very modest, at least for the time being. If I can make £260 ($400) per month from 1 book, I'll be very happy. And then I'll take it from there. I wonder if it's possible to make that much from 1 product only, and then move on and make money from another 1 product about something else.
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      • Profile picture of the author zinsavage123
        Blogging is all about speaking from the heart in my opinion, as well as honestly. The best thing you can do is be yourself. If need be do some research about a specific topic before taking the plunge to blog/post about it. Just some quick tips aside from the good old keyword search and such.
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    • Profile picture of the author digitalsapien
      Originally Posted by Stuart Walker View Post

      You could create products and just work on getting other people to sell your product so you don't have to run a blog.

      Many of the big vendors here on WF for example don't have their own blogs but just knock out product after product and work on getting affiliates on board to promote.
      True. You really don't need to own a blog even if you have so much to say. You can earn online without it. But of course, the idea of having your thoughts, reviews published online is quite awesome especially if you are earning from it.
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      Discover what every Internet marketer needs to know about building a profitable online business only at Entrepreneurs Wealth League.

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  • Profile picture of the author duplication
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    • Profile picture of the author heavysm
      One of the things that keeps me going is reading, especially stuff contrary to my opinion. This helps give me a foundation for creating posts about "why" some opposing view points may be wrong or invalid.

      It helps give you material for your own voice (deconstruct and reconstruct an argument as your blog post) since many real bloggers are very opinionated and use their blog to share their personal ideas.
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  • Profile picture of the author IMBlest
    Perhaps you can think about the various questions you have been asked by different people about your various interest.

    Then create a blog post answering those questions.
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  • Profile picture of the author jex1
    I have a blog, I talk about the things I feel people are thinking but are too "afraid" to say. I don't mention anything business related, I feel in the future if I am sucessful in my fiction ebooks (and physical books) people might get driven to the blog by googling my name... THEN I might try and just put a list of my books on one of the widgets. I blog because I like sharing my views and I like writing, my friends keep asking me for more content, but the only comments I get is spam at the moment. Not bothered really, like you I love writing so I just blog because I enjoy it.

    From a business point of view my plan is to sell non fiction guide ebooks, enough o get a solid monthly income whilst I write my own fiction, if that sells John Locke style then I will be happy, if it doesn't sell then I am not losing money per say; as I have the non fiction income.

    I don't want to monetise the blog, even if I had 1mill readers a day I wouldn't want to Adsense it...
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  • Profile picture of the author Wizardofwisdom
    Originally Posted by Johnny1975 View Post


    For example, I'm a musician. I play guitar. I've been working on a short ebook about a particular aspect of guitar playing (fretboard familiarization using greek modes, for anyone who knows what I mean). Writing the book isn't a problem, the problem is that I seriously can't be bothered to blog endlessly about that aspect of guitar playing (never mind the fact that before long I would have covered everything in the book), or even about guitar playing in general.

    The thing is, sometimes a person can be quite interested in something, or even very interested, but their outlet for their interest doesn't include writing.

    ... The great irony is that I do love writing, and I'm quite good at it.

    ...there's a mismatch between my love of writing and my distaste for writing fluff and repeating myself, which is what I'd end up doing if I started a blog based on my product (that's if I finish it).

    ... I just don't want to force myself to write. I don't want it to be a constant struggle.

    I do realise that if I'm going to create an information product (ie a book about guitar fretboard familiarization), I'm going to need a blog, so that I have a reason to keep adding to it, so that I have a marketing tool.

    Basically I've racked my brains and out of all the things that I'm interested in, not one of them is something that I feel enthusiastic in blogging about long term.

    What should I do?
    As both a fellow writer and guitarist, I had to reply to you.

    Man, oh man, how did you get your thinking into this tangle?

    You're starting from a belief that you MUST blog. (Why?)

    Then you've added to it that you must blog about things that interest you. (Well, if you're going to blog, I'd agree there).

    I play guitar, and if I was going to blog about it I think I'd probably make a video, or at least an audio, of me doing some smart lick or trick or something that might intrigue other guitarists. (Who are legion, as we both know. But I doubt there are many who'd go searching for a blog post about Greek modes. Hot rock licks or how to play a 12 bar blues, perhaps).

    Then post the video on a blog page and ping it out to Facebook and all the social media and invite comments or questions.

    When somebody writes in and asks, "How do you that cool thing with your left thumb?" you write the next blog post - or make the next video.

    I bet you don't have any trouble talking guitars and guitarists with other players, am I right? And how many of those conversations have been about Greek modes?

    You say you love to write but start your (long and well written) post by stating that you don't think you've got anything interesting to say about anything. (More or less).

    But that isn't how you have conversations, is it? You wouldn't stay in your house for months because you can't think of anything you might say to your friends, would you?

    Do you see my point?

    You'll write about the things that do interest you. Some dull guitar scale isn't going to make a blog post. "How I made up my own hot lick using a dull old Greek scale" might be though!

    You've carved yourself into a deep groove because you're thinking from the wrong end. Nobody says you HAVE to blog. Sure, it might be a good way to attract traffic, but there are tons of others.

    I bet you don't pick up the guitar because you feel you have to. Be the same with your pen/keyboard. Then, when the mood takes you, you'll write - and you'll do it beautifully.

    Hope that helps!
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